Create Café

Dustin Maki knew he wanted to start his own business, but it wasn’t until the Edwards School of Business graduate met others who shared his obsession with 3D printers that a plan took shape.

“About two and a half years ago, I got my first printer and just tampered with it on my own, figured out kind of how it operated,” said Maki, who completed his University of Saskatchewan accounting degree earlier this month.

“Then I met Lance (Greene) through one of my work friends, who said, ‘He has a 3D printer and he’s doing a lot of experimenting with different materials,’ which is something I didn’t do — but I saw it as a good opportunity.”

That opportunity resulted in the formation of Create Café, which its owners — Maki, Greene, Duncan Boyes and William Topping — describe as the city’s first commercial 3D printing business.

3D printing works by using a machine, or printer, to replicate a three-dimensional design using thin layers of plastic or nylon. The thinner the layers, the higher the quality.

Maki said he believes the technology offers “endless possibilities,” from manufacturing replacement parts for a huge array of consumer objects to making prototypes for other businesses.

“It’s really good for rapid prototyping when you’re doing development on a product … That way you can have a 3D object in your hands and you can see if there are any design flaws you didn’t see on the computer.”

The firm, which opened on College Drive last month, owns four 3D printers and plans to add at least 10 more in the coming month.

Right now, the company can manufacture anything that can fit inside a 10-inch box, as well as design objects from scratch or replicate a physical object, Maki said.

Create Café is the first business for three of its owners — Topping was part of the team that developed Magnoplug, a magnetic plug to connect automotive block heaters to external power. Everyone is enjoying the experience, Maki said.

“I think we’re having, like, almost too much fun with it,” he said with a laugh. “I mean, we’re only limited by our imagination, and then the imaginations of others, too.”

Related

Andrew Morden has been repairing shoes for more than three decades. Earlier this month, he opened a new shop on 33rd Street West.

Ambros’ Shoe Repair

When Andrew Morden was 16 years old, he tried to get a job repairing shoes, only to be rebuffed.

“I don’t think you want that job,” he recalled a woman in the local job office telling him.

Years later, in 1983, Morden decided he did want that job, and started work at a local leather and shoe repair shop. Apart from a few years spent working other jobs, shoe repair has dominated the Saskatoon man’s life.

“I’m not worried about getting rich or anything like that; it’s just doing something that I love to do, and if I can make as much as I can make working for someone else, I’ll be happy in the end,” he said.

In 1986, Morden opened Andy’s Shoe Repair in a downtown office. He said the shop flourished for a few years before a poorly-thought-out move to a new space a few blocks away led to its closure.

Earlier this year, he decided to give it another try. He had begun assembling equipment and machines, and needed a space to work — one that wasn’t in a garage, he said with a laugh.

Ambros’ Shoe Repair, which opened on 33rd Street West earlier this month, is dedicated to leather repair. Morden said he’ll happily mend shoes, purses and leather jackets — pretty much anything except large pieces of luggage.

“I’m also hoping to be making some custom shoes when I get the right people asking for the right projects,” he said, noting that while he learned repairs from industry veterans, he’s self-taught when it comes to custom shoes.

Morden said while the number of shoe repair shops in Saskatoon has shrunk dramatically since he last ran a similar business, the demand for high-quality workmanship is on the rise.

“I believe there is more interest in having things repaired, and I believe it’s growing — custom-made projects and whatnot — and I think the interest is on the rise,” he said.

Morden, whose business is part of a growing community of small artisan-oriented shops on 33rd Street West, said he’s hopeful about the future and looks forward to being back in business under his own name.

“I’m enjoying it more as the time goes on,” he said. “I’m really excited about it and I think I have a spot that’s going to work out good.”

Related

If you have started, expanded or moved a small business in Saskatoon within the last few months, contact Alex MacPherson at 306-657-6210 or amacpherson@postmedia.com. Home-based and temporary businesses, as well as those without physical locations, will not be considered for publication.

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